Easy Tonight
by racefh853629
Summary: Slightly dark 4-shot. "Tonight, Tony, is the night you die."
1. Introduction

A/N: Just a short story (four chapters) as an interlude until I start posting the sequel to "It's Not Over." I don't own NCIS, CBS, or any other known entity. There is some bad language in this story, and it is a slightly darker story, but not in the way "It's Not My Time" or "It's Not Over" are dark. If that makes sense... Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review. :)

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Introduction

His hand is calm and steady as it holds the handgun at arm's length. His eyes narrow in anger, staring at the face of his former friend. Former confidante. Former team leader. Former tormenter.

Former anything.

He can't understand why it took him so long to even think of this. The other man has it coming to him, and has for many years. He deserves this. He has _earned_ this.

Why Gibbs puts up with the annoyance, he has no idea.

The person at the other end of the barrel stirs, slowly waking up. He holds his position, steadying himself for the fight he knew would come.

"Wake up, Tony," he instructs the sleeping form.

Confusion works into his features, but Tony doesn't open his eyes. Not yet, anyway.

He huffs slightly, impatience growing in him as Tony takes forever. Tony _always_ takes forever. Tony _always_ does things on his own timetable without regard for others. And that is another thing that pisses him off to no end.

He clicks back the hammer of the gun loudly, knowing that would be enough to get Tony to open his eyes. Sure enough, Tony snaps awake, instantly reaching for his own weapon.

"You're not going to find it," he says, pointing his gun in Tony's face.

Tony looks up for the first time, finally seeing the face before him. "McGee?" he asks, completely confused.

McGee is calmly angry and determined, with his finger poised and ready on the trigger. "Tonight, Tony, is the night you die."


	2. Part 1

A/N: Here's the next part! See the intro for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this installment, and please review!

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Part 1

_**Four Months Earlier…**_

_McGee sat behind his desk, typing away as Tony walked into the bullpen. "Morning, Probie," the older man greeted simply._

"_Morning," McGee replied casually._

"_What's new?"_

"_Not much."_

"_I had a date last night."_

"_What else is new?" McGee grumbled, typing._

"_She was amazing, Probie."_

_Gibbs walked into the bullpen, thereby ending that conversation. Something that McGee was thankful for. McGee kept his head down, but heard Tony mumble something about going for coffee and walking out of the room._

_McGee looked up curiously as Gibbs stood in front of his desk. "What's up, Boss?" he asked._

"_Director's got a mission for you," Gibbs said._

_McGee nodded. "On it."_

*~*~*~*

**Present**

"McGee, we can talk about this, can't we?" Tony practically pleads.

McGee scoffs. "The time for talking is over, Tony," he says. "You could've stopped. You could've proven that you were worthy of living a long time ago. And you failed."

"McGee…"

McGee lifts the gun slightly, firing a single round into the wall, mere inches from Tony's left ear. "Next time, Tony, I won't miss."

Tony, for once, closes his mouth.

"For too long, I listened to you torture me. Torment me. Harass me. Call me names, slap my head. Far too long."

"Gibbs…" Tony tries, but stops, suddenly afraid by the darkness in McGee's eyes.

"Gibbs will get what is coming to him," McGee growls. "You're just the first."

Tony swallows.

"For once, you're actually the one that matters most to someone else. How does that make you feel?"

"Considering you're pointing a gun at me, not that great."

McGee smirks darkly, clicking back the hammer again.

"Can I just ask you a question before you kill me? Please?"

"I suppose."

"What the hell happened to you?"

McGee scoffs again. "You all betrayed me. _He's_ the only one who cares about me."

"He who?"

"No more questions."

"Please, Tim. Please. I just want to understand."

If Tony's pleading is an act or a stall tactic, McGee isn't noticing, his mind too focused on the task at hand to see what the investigator is doing. "You don't deserve it."

"I know that. I don't deserve anything but to be shot. But please, what happened?"

*~*~*~*

_**Four Months Earlier…**_

_McGee poked his head through the doors to the director's office. "You wanted to see me?" he said._

"_Yeah," Vance replied, waving the agent inside._

_McGee walked in, closing the door behind him. "What can I do for you, Director?"_

"_I got a special mission for you. Undercover."_

"_Okay."_

"_It's a dangerous mission, but I need someone with your computer skills."_

"_What is it?"_

"_We've been monitoring a group of radicals that have been threatening a small unit of Marines stationed at Quantico. We need you to infiltrate them under the guise of a computer hacker. Convince the group that you can track the Marines better than them, help us find out what they're plans are."_

"_Okay."_

"_Go downstairs and work up a background with Ms. Sciuto."_

"_You got it, Director."_

*~*~*~*

**Present**

"The mission went badly," Tony says softly, more in remembrance than anything else.

McGee nods. "And do you know why it went bad, Tony?" he says.

"Because you were made."

"BECAUSE I WAS MADE!"

Tony flinches as McGee screams in his face.

McGee leans back a little bit. "And do you know why I was made?"

Tony swallows. "Because they ran Abby's papers."

McGee nods. "And something went wrong. She's next, after Ziva. Who is after Gibbs. Who is after you."

"She didn't…"

"Save it, DiNozzo!" McGee cuts in harshly. "By the end of the night, everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, on Team Gibbs will be dead."

Tony folds his knees in toward his chest, allowing himself to seem afraid and give McGee the upper hand.

"You all betrayed me. And now you all must die."


	3. Part 2

A/N: See the introduction for the disclaimer. I'm glad you guys are liking this story! This part is a little longer than the rest of them, but I think it explains the most. I hope you guys enjoy, and please review! :)

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Part 2

_**Three Months Earlier…**_

_McGee, clad in a leather jacket, jeans, and a white T-shirt, made his way into the NCIS offices. He bypassed the bullpen, nodding at Team Gibbs before walking up the stairs. He made his way into the director's office, finding the man sitting behind his desk._

"_You wanted to see me?" McGee said._

"_How is it going?" Vance asked._

"_Almost in."_

_Vance nodded._

"_They're extremists, I can tell that much. It's not just Marines they're after, though. Once I'm in, I'll let you know more."_

"_Good work, Agent McGee. Keep me updated."_

"_You got it."_

*~*~*~*

**Present**

"No one ever told me what happened," Tony says softly.

McGee scoffs. "Oh, you were told, DiNozzo," he replies. "You just weren't listening, per usual. Why do you think Agent Tommy is such a dumbass?"

In a different setting, Tony would likely argue here. But not tonight. Not with an extremely pissed off McGee pointing a gun at him that he isn't afraid to use.

"Just like you, DiNozzo. Dumb and oblivious."

Tony nods, but says nothing.

"It's better off this way, DiNozzo. Without you on the planet. I'm sure your father told you that a few times, didn't he?"

Tony doesn't respond.

"You might want to answer me here, Tony."

"I'm trying to figure out if you're here to torture me or kill me," Tony says. "I mean, if it's the first, you're likely to run out of time in your quest to kill off all of Team Gibbs in one night."

"You're the one who wanted answers, DiNozzo," McGee says.

Tony shrugs. "I just wanted to know how I messed you up so badly. Where I went wrong."

"Does it really matter? It's not like you're ever going to get a chance to fix it."

"I'm hoping my death can atone for that."

McGee laughs, a bitter, hollow, sinister noise that actually pushes Tony to feel a small amount of the fear he had been portraying in giving McGee the control. "Your death will be meaningless, Tony," McGee growls. "You're not dying to save anything. You're not dying for any noble cause. You're dying because I want you dead. And know that it's not likely to bring me any peace for what you've done. It will bring me satisfaction for _finally_ giving into the urges I've had for _years_."

Tony nods, bringing his knees tighter into his chest. If McGee is really going to kill him, it won't be with a shot to the chest. It's going to be a headshot. Something that Tony has known since waking up with McGee's revolver in his face.

"I'm sorry," Tony whispers.

McGee laughs the same bitter laugh again. "Do you even know the meaning of those words?" he says.

"I get the gist."

McGee smashes the revolver across Tony's face. "You don't ever get anything."

*~*~*~*

_**Two Months Earlier…**_

_McGee found himself face-to-face with a shotgun and a very angry extremist. "Who the hell are you?" the man said._

"_I told you," McGee said nervously. "Michael Ryan."_

"_We know that's not true. We ran your papers. They came up fake. So who are you really?"_

"_I told you."_

_The man swung the butt of the gun into McGee's temple, causing the world to go black for a moment before returning to focus. "You are alone here. Your people sent you here to die. We will prove this to you. They gave up on you."_

"_I don't know who you are referring to. I work for myself. I told you all this."_

_The man hit him again. "All you told us were lies. We will get to the truth. And when we do, you will realize that we are the only people you can trust."_

*~*~*~*

**Present**

"I take it you didn't trust them either," Tony says.

McGee glares. "Hard to completely trust someone who teaches lessons with pain," he replies.

Tony arches his eyebrows.

"That doesn't mean he was wrong, though. You guys didn't come back for me."

"We tried."

McGee swings the gun into Tony's face again. "You didn't try. You all left me there to die. You gave up."

"We didn't give up on Ziva. There was no way we were going to give up on you."

"SHUT UP! I am _sick_ of your lies."

"We found you, Tim. In an alley. Half-dead. They left you there to die. We followed them there when they threw you out. We killed them to get you back."

"You're lying." Yet McGee's hand is growing shakier, the gun starting to slip out of it.

"I'm sorry we couldn't find you before then," Tony continues, knowing he's slowly gaining control over the situation. "I'm sorry they had you for a month before we could find you. I know you can understand how hard that was, considering how long it took you to infiltrate the group."

McGee narrows his eyes, trying to find some of the anger he was holding onto earlier. But as Tony sits before him, face full of honesty, sympathy, and concern, McGee can feel his resolve starting to crumble.

"I'm sorry our best wasn't enough," Tony says. "That's our fault. We were trying our best, and we just weren't good enough. We've always needed and missed you. You're one of the biggest, most important members of our team. We can't do this without you."

McGee swallows, not registering the footsteps coming up behind him.

"Please, Tim," Tony pleads, glancing briefly away from McGee to look at the newcomer. "Put down the gun. Let's talk. Let's fix this."

"This is your fault," McGee says, holding the weapon more firmly and pointing it into Tony's face again.

"I know. And you're more than welcome to beat the crap out of me for it. But please. Don't throw your life away like this. You're better than this."

McGee stares at Tony silently.

"My building has security tapes. My neighbors heard the shot. If they haven't already called the cops, they're going to. If you do this, you're going to end up spending the rest of your life in prison."

"Not if I kill myself first," McGee disputes.

"Do you really want to do that?" Tony asks.

"I just want to kill you."

"I know."

McGee stares at Tony silently.

"Please, Tim. Lower the gun."

McGee keeps the gun pointed at Tony, but the older man isn't flinching like he was earlier. Instead, he is calm, unsure of what McGee is thinking but hoping it's not about pulling the trigger.

"You guys left me there," McGee says.

"We tried," Tony says.

"You didn't try hard enough."

"I promise you that we did. We tried everything. We would never leave you like that. We can never leave a man behind. Especially not one that means as much to us as you do."

McGee softens slightly. "You mean that?"

Tony nods. "You're very important to us. We need you."

"You betrayed me."

"We would never do that to you. We can't do that to you."

McGee nods, finally lowering the gun and placing it on Tony's bed as he looks to the floor. Tony climbs out of bed, taking the gun and handing it to the other man in the room.

McGee looks up, finally realizing that Gibbs has come into the room. Gibbs makes eye contact with McGee as he holsters his weapon. "You okay, Tony?" he asks.

"Fine, Boss," Tony replies, putting his hand on McGee's shoulder gently. He looks over at the man that, up until a few minutes ago, had been holding him at gun point. "Everything's going to be okay."

Gibbs nods, still keeping his gaze on McGee, who is now looking at the ground. "Tim?"

"I'm sorry, Boss," he whispers.

"No harm, no foul," Tony says, sliding his hand to McGee's other shoulder and pulling the younger man into a bit of a hug. "Like I said, everything's going to be okay."


	4. Conclusion

A/N: Last chapter! See the first part for the disclaimer. Thanks to all of you who have reviewed, alerted, and favorited this story along the way. It's much appreciated! I hope you guys enjoy this last bit, and please review. :)

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Conclusion

**Present**

Now disarmed, McGee sits on Tony's couch, putting his head in his hands. Tony sits on his armchair, keeping his distance from McGee now that the ordeal in the bedroom has had time to sink in. Gibbs simply stands in the corner, just watching his two agents with a mild anger toward McGee's actions.

"I… I don't even know what to say right now," McGee says softly. "Sorry doesn't feel like enough."

Tony doesn't say anything, instead choosing to let McGee have the floor.

"I… I can't believe I just held you at gunpoint. I tried to kill you. I put a hole in your bedroom wall."

"Better than my head," Tony comments with a shrug.

Gibbs looks at Tony, who eyes the boss slightly dismissively.

McGee looks up at Tony with a slight frown. "How can you be so callous about this?" he asks. "I broke into your apartment. I held you at gunpoint. I planned to kill you."

"You came to your senses," Tony replies, shrugging.

"And that makes it better? Tony, I would've killed you. I wanted you to wake up to torture you. I friggen pistol-whipped you."

Tony touches his cheek tenderly before shaking his head. "Your mind wasn't in the right place."

"And that's supposed to make it better?"

"You're coming back. You should be fine."

McGee sighs, dropping his head into his shaking hands. "I'm so sorry, Tony," he says, breaking down. "I can't believe I did this to you. Oh, man, I'm so sorry."

Tony sighs himself, wanting to comfort McGee but also being worried that the younger man would try something else. He looks up to Gibbs, his eyes betraying his confliction. Gibbs nods.

"How did…" McGee starts.

Tony smirks slightly. "You took my gun," he says. "You didn't take my cell phone."

McGee nods, now realizing that Tony had taken the phone and likely called Gibbs. The junior agent looks over at the team leader fearfully. "I'm never going to be allowed back onto the team, am I?"

Gibbs stares back in a non-committal way.

"I didn't think so," McGee whispers.

"You're worried about NCIS right now?" Tony asks. "I mean… I'm more worried about you as a person than you having a job."

McGee sighs, looking down.

"You know this isn't you, right? You know this isn't normal."

"I know," McGee breathes.

"We need to get you help, Tim. Start there. Worry about the rest later."

McGee nods. "I can't believe I put a hole in your wall."

Tony shrugs. "I always wanted a new decoration there."

McGee looks up at Tony in confusion, and the older man simply smiles. McGee shakes his head slowly. "I'm sorry, Tony," he says.

"It's going to be okay, Tim," Tony says.

"It's… uh… it's just a little hard to believe that right now after I just tried to murder you in your own apartment."

"You snapped. It happens. What we do now is we put things back together. We get you some help. You're not alone here, Tim. Everything is going to be okay."

"How can you say this after I just tried to kill you?"

"You're part of the family, McGee. And we never leave a family member behind or hung out to dry."

McGee nods.

"Just, promise me one thing."

"What's that?" McGee asks.

"You'll never do it again," Tony says.

"I won't."

Tony nods, sighing and resting back. "Besides, you're not the first member of my family to try to kill me," he quips. "My cousin Marcus."

"Why'd he try to kill you?" McGee asks.

"I stole his girl."

McGee snorts softly. "Ahh."

Tony makes a face slightly. "Yeah. Although, he came out of the closet a few years later, and we laughed about it."

McGee sighs. "You think we'll ever get there?"

"To where we're laughing about it?"

McGee nods.

Tony raises and lowers one shoulder. "One day."

The End


End file.
